Adeleke promises to extend the mandate through legal proceedings

Osun State Governor Senator Ademola Adeleke on Friday pledged to reconfirm his governorship mandate, which had been declared invalid by the state’s petition court, through the same court process.

Adeleke made the pledge while receiving “Unit to Unit Ambassadors,” a campaign organization from Osun West Senatorial District in Osogbo, according to a statement made available to journalists in Osogbo by its spokesman, Mallam Olawale Rasheed.

The statement told the organization: “You cannot have a strong democracy unless we all regard the judiciary as the indispensable arbiter. So we’re going to appeal and we’re confident we’ll get justice. I urge all of us to be calm and go about our daily activities peacefully.

“I understand how difficult and emotional the judgment is for the people of Osun State. But we can only express our disagreement through the legal process. That is why there is an appeal procedure. We have all the grounds to appeal and we do.

“So continue your campaign from unit to unit. We run the state of Osun to fulfill the will and aspirations of the people. By God and man, our mandate will be reaffirmed by the same judicial process.

“The critical role of the judiciary in entrenching and strengthening Nigerian democracy, listing the many judicial interventions that have helped stabilize the nation.

“Democracy revolves around the wheel of justice. Justice is the domain of the judiciary. All Democrats must therefore have unwavering faith in the judiciary. I have that confidence in the judiciary to right injustice and deepen our democracy.

“I am a beneficiary of judicial intervention. I cannot forget how the judiciary acquitted me of counterfeiting charges and through the same legal process I will reaffirm my mandate,” he stressed.

READ ALSO FROM NIGERIAN STAND